Times are Changing
by Miss Reason
Summary: After a retired CBI agent is found murdered at a carnival, fears of a ‘cop killer’ surface and the team is put up to its greatest challenge with devastating effects.
1. Chapter 1

Grace let out a long grown as she shifted her petite frame to the side of the bed. She swung her legs around and rubbed her eyes longing to stay in her peaceful slumber. As she prepared to stand, strong arms wrapped around her body and dragged her back into bed. She laughed at her partner's playfulness.

'Wayne, we have to go to work,' she said through her giggles as he smooched her bed hair. He laughed and pulled her closer.

'I'm sure Lisbon won't mind if we are a few minutes late,' he tried. Grace removed herself from his grasp.

'Wayne, we have to keep us a secret, you know that. Showing up late will only give us away,' she said as she began to sit once more. Wayne let out a long groan and wrapped himself in her feather quilt.

'Fine! I'm going to have a shower, you're more than welcome to join me,' he said cheekily as he moved toward the bathroom, subtly dropping the quilt. Grace felt her cheeks flush a warm red. She let out a small sigh and then proceeded to follow. Surely a few minutes wouldn't matter.

***

'You're late Van Pelt!' Lisbon stated clearly as Grace rushed into the office. She flushed red and apologised focusing on the floor.

'Any idea where Rigsby is?' Jane asked from his usual sofa in the corner. Grace shook her head and promptly took her seat.

'Coincidence?' Jane said as he looked at Cho with his arms raised. Cho snickered and continued on with his work. A few minutes passed with only the sound of Janes solving of a Rubik's Cube filling the space. A flushed looking Rigsby finally ran in only to catch the glare of Lisbon.

'What has gotten into this team?' she asked rhetorically as she approached a scared look Rigsby.

'You and Van Pelt are late, Cho managed to spill coffee all over his paper work for the past 3 months and Jane, well, Jane is Jane,' she said as she pointed her finger angrily at Rigsby's chest.

'I resent that,' Jane said from the corner. Lisbon rolled her eyes and ignored Rigsby and went to bicker with him. Rigsby let out a smell breath of relief. His eyes quickly darted to Grace's desk, where she was purposely avoiding them. He rolled his eyes and wandered over to his desk.

***

'Oh I love carnivals!' Said Jane as the approached what was sure to be a grisly crime scene. Lisbon rolled her eyes as she snapped on a pair of rubber gloves. She turned to the officer at her side and cocked her eye brow waiting for him to explain what had happened. The man nervously cleared his throat, clearly intimidated by the small woman in front of him.

'The victim is 33 year old Ivan Clear, he was found this morning hung from the ceiling of the old fashioned re-enactment village by his fake wife Maureen, real name Isabelle Klick. At first it appeared to be a suicide, as there was a note, but after the body was let down it showed that the victim was stabbed, cleaned, redressed and then hung,'

'What did the note say?' Cho asked as he scribbled down the officers words into his small notebook.

The officer fidgeted around his pocket and pulled out a plastic evidence bag containing a crumpled and old looking piece of paper with cursive writing. He cleared his throat again and then handed the note to Lisbon. She took it from him and studied it carefully.

'Care to share?' Jane commented as he waited impatiently. Lisbon's eyes widened as she read the note over and over again. Finally she took her eyes from the piece of paper and looked deeply into Janes. She gulped and handed it to him, he carefully took it from her hands but refused to break eye contact, for this was the first time he had ever seen Therese Lisbon, a strictly strong woman, show fear.

****


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Always Know Everyone

'Lisbon?' Jane asked still holding the note an arm's length away from him. Lisbon blinked, confused and fearful.

'Read it,' she stated croakily. Jane, still focused on Lisbon, drew the note closer. He finally broke contact and reviewed what the crumpled note had to say. Now it was his turn to be confused. Cho cleared his throat in anticipation while Jane read the note over and over; it seemed to him, like a normal suicide note.

'What does it say?' Cho said, finally losing patience with his subtle attempts at grabbing Jane's attention.

'Its just your average suicide note, to his kids,' Jane said, focussing back onto Lisbon and handing the note to Cho.

'Lisbon, what's going on?' Jane asked. Lisbon shook her head.

'Must just be a coincidence,' she said as she snapped out of her fearful day dream and back into action. Jane didn't appreciate this; he hated not knowing what was going on in the minds of his colleagues.

'Theresa?' Jane said with an unusually serious tone.

'Drop it Jane, where are Rigsby and Van Pelt?' she snapped as she made her way to the old re-enactment building.

'Getting a statement from Isabelle Klick,' Cho responded as he followed her in.

'They both have to be there for that?' she asked grumpily. Cho started examining the crime scene while Jane watched Lisbon carefully.

'Why go to all this trouble to make it look like suicide when it so obviously wasn't?' Lisbon asked rhetorically.

'A message to someone,' Cho said in a monotone voice.

'What kind of message does that send Cho?' she asked angrily.

'Whoa, Lisbon, Chill!' Jane said whilst raising his hands to the surrender position. A look of fury washed over Lisbon's face and she began pacing angrily towards him. She raised her finger evident she was about to blow her top when a loud scream was heard from behind the hut they were in. Cho pulled his weapon and Lisbon spun around, they were quickly joined by Van Pelt and Rigsby who had their hands ready to draw.

'What was that?' Van Pelt asked innocently. Jane noticed Rigsby subtly move in front of her, although to protect her from some evil.

Cho moved toward the exit and Lisbon moved gracefully with him. He carefully, but quickly opened the hut door revealing a distressed woman.

'He's dead! I cant believe he is dead!' she wailed as she ran in Janes direction. Jane caught the sobbing woman and rested her carefully onto the ground, using himself as a support beam.

'Who's dead?' Lisbon asked from the corner. The woman sobbed some more and raised her head to look at Jane, her eyes were red and her mascara was making tracks down her pale white skin...

'Jack Forman,'

****

They all stood around the scene, saddened by what they saw. A former CBI agent, bloodied and dead lay before them, the only evidence of his identity being a badge and ID carefully pinned to his once strong chest.

'Do you think they're connected?' Van Pelt asks a breathless whisper. The area remains silent as they mourn the passing of a once much loved friend.

'Yes,' Lisbon finally answers. Jane lifts his head from the gruesome scene to take in Lisbon's demeanour.

'The note was a message to you, wasn't it?' he asks without hesitation. She nods slowly.

'It matches the exact note my Dad left when he died,' she says with a gulp. Rigsby and Van Pelt look up to focus on their normally composed boss.

'I never knew your Dad killed...' Van Pelt started but was quickly hushed by Rigsby.

'I don't like to make it common knowledge,' Lisbon mutters. Van Pelt nods and looks back.

'Cop killer?' Cho asks bluntly from the side

'Potentially. I want everybody in partners at all times, i mean the whole CBI. Ill talk to Manelli, but I know he'll agree. Rigsby and Cho, I want you to canvas the area and find ANYTHING that could help us, i don't care if its a piece of fluff that looks slightly out of place, bag it, tag it and send it off to the labs. Van Pelt, you and I are going to interview everyone and anyone, no question is off limits, we NEED to get to the bottom of this. Jane, do what you do best!' Lisbon ordered as everybody scattered.

'Oh! And stick together, if there is the remote possibility of a cop killer on the loose i don't want any of you guys getting hurt. Cho and Rigsby you guys will play room mates, Van Pelt and I will do the same, no excuses!' Lisbon orders as she walks over to a crowd of people, her pen in hand, ready to take down all information available. Jane notices a brief exchange of nervous glances between Van Pelt and Rigsby, but chooses to ignore it. Now was the time to do what he does best, read what others cannot.

**Thanks for the, hopefully honest reviews. I appreciate it greatly. I know this chapter isn't the best, my grammar is a little off but to be honest I'm suffering from a bad bout of food poisoning and don't really care that much. **

**PLEASE please review...the more reviews, the quicker i update! **


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